Stretched quantum membranes

Membranes at Quantum Criticality

We propose a quantum theory of membranes designed such that the ground-state wavefunction of the membrane with compact spatial topology Σh reproduces the partition function of the bosonic string on worldsheet Σh. The construction involves worldvolume matter at quantum criticality, described in the simplest case by Lifshitz scalars with dynamical critical exponent z = 2. This matter system must ...

Black Holes as Quantum Membranes

We propose a quantum description of black holes. The degrees of freedom to be quantized are identified with the microscopic degrees of freedom of the horizon, and their dynamics is governed by the action of the relatistic bosonic membrane in D = 4. We find that a consistent and plausible description emerges, both at the classical and at the quantum level. We present results for the level struct...

Thermodynamics of quantum crystalline membranes

Decrumpling membranes by quantum effects

– The phase diagram of an incompressible fluid membrane subject to quantum and thermal fluctuations is calculated exactly in a large number of dimensions of configuration space. At zero temperature, a crumpling transition is found at a critical bending rigidity 1/αc. For membranes of fixed lateral size, a crumpling transition occurs at nonzero temperatures in an auxiliary mean field approximati...

Contact probing of stretched membranes and adhesive interactions: graphene and other two-dimensional materials

Contact probing is the preferable method for studying mechanical properties of thin two-dimensional (2D) materials. These studies are based on analysis of experimental force-displacement curves obtained by loading of a stretched membrane by a probe of an atomic force microscope or a nanoindenter. Both non-adhesive and adhesive contact interactions between such a probe and a 2D membrane are stud...